A Fun Bunch Of Guys From Outer Space
by A Brilliant Loser
Summary: It's all fun and games (and war, can't forget about that blasted war) until you realize you might have sorta, kind of, left five kids stranded in outer space. Or, that time that the Gundam Pilots are anthropomorphic representations of the colonies, and the nations didn't know it. A continuation to the story "Neglect" by wolfspeaker01.
1. L1-N108

So! The lovely wolfspeaker01 gave me permission to expand on the bunny that is Neglect! I should be working on Kizuna or maybe writing an Avengers crossover or something but...

*shrugs* Not sure how long this will be. The drabbles escalate on a scale that runs from TEH LULZ to Reichenbach feels; I apologize in advance. Totes send me requests and bunnies for this. :3

Updates will probably be sporadic, and AO3 will more than likely get them first, sorry.

* * *

**AC 020**

Even though this was the year his older brother came into being, he had been an idea for decades. Hastily sketched diagrams on napkins, extensive charts, forms upon forms upon forms. Only a little longer now...

**AC 027**

L1-N108 was the first colony of the cluster to be completed. The workers rarely paid attention to the small child with the mess of brown hair, unless he wandered into an area still under heavy construction. Then the child would be directed away (sometimes with a pat and a pack of sweets, other times with a snarl and threats), told to stay with his okaa-san and that would be that. Everyone just assumed he was just another worker's brat.

Of course, they would be wrong.

**AC 060**

The colony is deserted and L1-N108 feels empty.

He is alone and wonders if this crippling loneliness is all he'll ever feel.

**AC 102**

It's been forty years since L1-N108 has been decommissioned, but it has since been replaced by the sparkly new Island 2 type colonies. The child missed N108 but... there were people now.

But the years pass, and he is just as alone as before.

**AC 126**

The child does not undestand why one day his heart feels light, it sings and dances within his too small body. It is an uncomfortable feeling and he doesn't quite know if he likes the feeling or not.

On L1-U786553, Yuki and Makoto Yuy welcome their first son into the world.

**AC 140**

One day, the child wakes up with fetters. The chains may not be tangible, but he feels the heavy weight of them. They lead to the pretty blue marble the colonies revolve around called "Earth", but it still leaves a bad taste in his mouth.

**AC 147**

He reads a newspaper that he filches from a hotel. "In the Name of Peace and Justice" is the reasoning for why he is no longer free. It makes anger course through him. He wants to do something but he's just a kid and it frustrates him even more.

**AC 167**

It's the first time he has ever seen Heero Yuy in person. Oh sure, he saw the broadcasts when he was elected to represent the colonies, had seen the many grainy pictures in the paper and heard his voice over the radio, but it doesn't do the real thing justice. That man is standing in a crowded outdoor ampitheatre of one of the more affluent colonies in the inner cluster. He speaks of change and peace, of demilitization and non-violence, and many more things the child has never really thought of. It's all pretty words and nice sentiments - a pipe dream. The child believes, no, he knows that it will never happen. But he enjoys listening to him and he knows, with every fiber of his tiny being, that he will never forget the man named Heero Yuy.

**AC 175, April 7**

Like everyone else at the bar, the child gasps in shock and horror when Heero Yuy is assassinated during his televised speech to the United Earth Sphere Alliance. Unlike everyone else, the child feels the pain tearing through him, a bullet blasting apart his skull. He's gasping and crying and he's in more pain than he's ever been and hehas no idea why. He's seen plenty of people die before, felt the pain of people dying before, but not like this. No, never like this, it's worse than anything he's ever felt before.

He's heard the phrase 水に流す plenty of times, but he knows he will never forget this moment, nor could he ever forgive it.

**AC 185**

Odin Lowe plays around with the cigarette in his mouth as he helps dig through the rubble of what once was a high rise hotel. What were the rebels thinking, blowing up a whole building to kill one Alliance rat? Aoi, he knew, would have been so upset with him, but he shook his head, focusing on the plan. Plant the bombs? Check. Blow up the building? Check. Pretend to be a recuse worker? Doing right now. And once he confirmed the kill, he could be on his way back to his little hovel on a different colony.

That bastard better be dead.

Another hour of searching, and another half-dozen mutilated corpses, Odin found the body. Or what's left of it. The blond gave an impressed whistle; the rat must have been right on top of one of the bombs when it exploded to be that bad off. Now sure that he was done, Odin started to make his way out of the fallout, only to stop when he thought he heard shifting rubble not caused by his footsteps. Which should not happen, seeing as he was far enough away from the other workers that he could only distantly hear their shouts.

He kept still, straining his ears as he listened for another... there! A groan, soft and nearly inaudible under all the wreckage. Someone was still alive under there. This, however, presented a dilemna to the assassin: his job was done and he could rightfully collect his paycheck and go home, but could he really leave someone to die right now when he can help it?

"God dammit."

He had to know, see the survivor for himself. Odin appraoched the area the sounds where coming from, "Hey, you still alive?"

Silence answered him until a soft whine pierced it, coming a little ways away from him. Odin wasted no time, starting to carefully move the larger pieces away so he could begin to dig. Soon enough he unearthed a small hand, attached to a thin arm. He cursed under his breath, and then louder when the fingers curled up in a fist. Yeah, less gawking, more digging. It took only a little while longer before he could pull the body out.

The child underneath the wreckage wasn't much. Just a thin, childish body topped with scruffy brown hair. While Odin checked his body out (obvious brusing, probably from falling debris, lots of scrapes, most likely from when he was trying to escape, no signs of a concussion, but there was a sharp intake of breath when he prodded his left arm. Some pieces of concrete probably hit him, but they kept him mostly safe from other pieces), the kid blinked dark blue eyes. Not seeing anything worse than the arm, Odin helped the boy up and passed him a water bottle, which was quickly snatched. The kid tried to open it one handed, only to scowl when it proved to be harder than he thought. Odin chuckled and twisted the cap off, earning a glare from the child, even as he took several deep sips from the bottle.

Damn, this kid was all sorts of lucky. Trapped underneath a thirty story hotel, and all he had to show for it was a broken arm and some scratches and bruises. "What's your name?" he asked, which sort of startled him. He should be flagging down the actual rescue workers, shoving him off to them so he could be on his way.

The kid looked at him, Prussian blue eyes piercing. It sent a shiver down his spine; no kid should have eyes that alone, that dead. "俺はエルワンダッシュエヌワンゼロエイト。"

Uh, yeah, no. That sounded like a name of a colony. "Nevermind, I'll just call you 'Kid'." Then, on a lark, "You want to come with me?"

Kid thought for a moment, looking down at the water bottle held in his hands. After a moment, he looked up and nodded. "Hn."

* * *

**Notes**:

Heero's was hella long and I don't quite know why. I always imagined Odin as blond and blue eyed in Episode Zero, but the official art in Frozen Teardrop has him brunet and scruffy. ...I'm... going with my EZ imaginings. I don't even want to figure out the clusterfuck that's the GW family tree.

Fun tidbits!

786553 is the decimal of the hex value C0079. As in, UC 0079, the year the original Mobile Suit Gundam series takes place. ... Yeah, I'm a dork.

水に流す (mizu ni nagasu) to wash away in water, (idiom) to forgive and forget

俺はエルワンダッシュエヌワンゼロエイト (ore ha eru wan dasshu enu wan zero eito) - I am L1-N108

Whoo, I had to go through so many clips from the Dynasty Warriors Gundam games to figure out what personal pronoun Heero uses (I'd use my own copy but my PS3 stopped working years ago, bluh).

So! No L1 colonies appear to have canon designations so I created my own. I chose N108 because 108 is a big number in Japanese mythos (the number of sins humans can commit) and the N? That's for Netherlands. Would have done H for Holland but the H sound in Japanese makes me twitch.


	2. L2-V08744

Was hoping to get this up by Valentine's but that didn' happen. I love Duo but writing his chapters just... ugh.

Thanks to everyone who reviewed and faved and followed!

* * *

**AC 104**

Pickpockets and street rats are common enough on the streets of L2. If one of them is just a young kid with smiling violet eyes, no one really notices.

**AC 183**

Another day, another pilfered loaf of bread. The boy hoists himself on a low wall, digging into the little bit of nourishment.

"This place's a real dump, innit?"

The violet-eyed boy startles at the sudden question, nearly falling off the wall with a yelp.

The other laughs, pulling himself on top of the brick and motor. Violet eyes take in the slightly older boy, assessing if he was a threat or not. Well, more of a threat - this was L2, everything is out to get you on this colony. The question was whether they wanted to screw you over at this moment or not. It also didn't help that the other kid had noticed him. Few ever saw the young boy and fewer took the time to talk to him.

"'Course, it's V08744, the pits of the cluster." The other boy continues without a pause, "Nice grab, by the way - didn' think ya had it in ya, bein' scrawny an' all." The violet eyed boy does his best to appear uninterested, but that certainly didn't deter the other. "Yer good, but ya can be a lotbetter. Ever thought of runnin' with someone playin' interference?"

No, he had never thought of that before, mostly because he was alone. The boy gives a nonchalant shrug in response, keeping an eye on the older child still.

"Then yah ougttah join us. Was finna get more people tah join an' I think it'd do us both sum good! Name's Solo an' 'm the the boss of us. You in?"

A group, huh? He grins; maybe being others wouldn't be so bad. And a Boss like Solo sounded like fun too.

**AC 187**

Mie clutches her hands against one of the bigger boy's chest, her sobs finally calming down after falling into a restless sleep. The ragtag group of street rats, or what's left of them, are huddled together, seeking warmth from each other and hoping that no one else would leave them . All except one, the boy with the violet eyes.

He stands in front of the shallow grave they had just dug for their departed leader, doing his best not to cry. Solo was gone just because those stupid bastards kept the antidote to themselves. It just wasn't fair - Solo had promised he would always be there for him, and get better and he never broke his promises and...

And...

And maybe he broke them sometimes (the one time he promised to get them into the cinema blew up spectacularly in their faces), but the most important ones he always kept. And, obviously, the most important one was for them to always be together then...

"If Solo's with me," he murmurs to himself, "we'll be Duo."

Duo clenches his hand into a fist, sucking a deep, calming breath. He couldn't cry now, not with Solo no longer among the living; he had to be strong and smile. Duo had promised to watch over the others and that's what he was going to do.

**AC 188**

Sister Helen is breathing hard, and Duo knew, knew that there was nothing he could do. "Duo..." Her hand reaches out like she was going to stroke his cheek one last time. "M-may you... have God's... blessing..."

The word left her lips with her last breath, the hand that came so close to his face falling limply to the ground.

No... This wasn't supposed to happen! Everything was supposed to get better after he got that stupid mobile suit! Duo wanted to rage at the heavens, at the so called "God" who allowed His innocents to be slaughtered.

But instead, all he got was laughter mixed with tears as he sat in the ruins of his family.

The Alliance soldiers who were dispatched to bring him in for questioning swore that they didn't find a grieving child but a demon in the form of one.

**AC 192**

G wasn't planning on having any trouble on such a basic salvage trip. The L2 colonies always had interesting junk just lying around, but that still didn't explain the little stowaway the guys found a good day and a half after their last docking.

The engineer eyes the child for a moment, assessing. The long hair made G think they had a little girl on board (even more terrifying than the idea of a child) but the coarse and vulgar language, heavy with an accent found only in the worst of the L2 slums, made it quite obvious that the kid was a boy.

A boy who had no problem calling a man twice his size to "let me go 'fore I shank ya right in the gut, you bastard!"

This made a small smirk cross the old man's face as he tells the others to let the child go. "My security system should've been perfect. How did you do it?"

"That's a trade secret," the kid starts, smirking at the adults around him. "But if it helps your pride, I'll say it was pretty tough."

G snickers, "You're an interesting kid."

This seemed to be the wrong thing to say, as the child (and he was nothing but a child really) explodes. "I'm not kid! My name's Duo. Duo Maxwell, who may run and hide, but never tells a lie."

"Maxwell...?" G mumbles to himself, before snorting. This boy was just too much! "Like Maxwell's Demon, eh?"

The smile he got in response sent a shiver down G's spine, and he's not quite sure why. "Nope, not just a demon. I'm the God of Death!"

At the bold proclamation, G gave the child, no Duo a hard look. G probably should plan to drop the kid off at the next colony but... Old Null's got himself a ward, a pilot he's setting up for Meteor. And if Jay can deal with a kid, he sure as hell could.

"Well then, welcome to the Sweepers, Duo. Shall I give you the grand tour?"

* * *

**Notes:**

Solo, I love you and all but I always imagined you with this really thick accent that's an unholy mix of Jersey and Boston and Maryland and I had no idea how to write that. "Finna" is a slang word for "fixing to", which is similar to "gonna"/"going to".

I rewrote AC 183 twice because I really wanted to use Duo's line from Episode Zero. And then just... made a tiny little bit for AC 187. It was originally long and angsty and I said screw it. Duo has a perfectly good back story chapter in Episode Zero

Of course, Professor G didn't realize that Duo and (the future) Heero are very, very different. I wouldn't be surprised if he wanted to launch 02 out of a vent after the first month or so.


	3. L3-S06

And... slightly different style. Tro's chapter just wanted to be written yo. FFN killed the formatting of AC 188.

* * *

**AC 127**

Lagrange Point 3 is far from both Earth and the other clusters. The L3 cluster is rather self-contained, and rather bereft of development.

Unlike the brothers he didn't know he had, this child refuses to stay in his cluster. The first chance he gets, he leaves for greener pastures.

**AC 159**

Somewhere in Eastern Europe, he meets a girl. Or, more accurately, a girl starts following him. She is older, appearing already in her teens, and her gray eyes look so knowing. She calls herself Perloja and proclaims herself his older sibling. No matter what he says, there's no stopping her, so he capitulates with little fanfare.

She names him Triton and forces him to eat her deadly cooking. Triton, however, takes it in stride and continues to watch the world.

**AC 176**

The first time he saw a mobile suit, Triton knew he wanted one. The power they exhibit is like nothing he has ever seen, and even though they are a symbol of the Alliance's power over him, he believes it is only behind the controls he can make a difference. When he expressed this sentiment to his sister, Katherine laughed. It was the first time she ever saw her brother act childishly.

Perhaps she should introduce him to the rest of the family, she muses. But they are in space, with a traveling circus act, so it's quite impossible now.

Maybe in a few months, a year tops.

Katherine wants to keep Triton to herself just a little bit longer.

**AC 182**

Sanq Kingdom falls and Eastern Europe erupts in war and conflict. Katherine holds Triton tight as they try to travel safely with the rest of the circus, but an exploding mine rockets the two out of the wagon they were riding in. No matter how she tries, Katherine can not find her brother.

War was a certainty for someone as old as Katherine, but now she hates it with every fiber of her being.

The boy wakes up, and the only thing he remembers is watching people die. The mercenaries who find him on the battlefield are baffled, but he is quick and intelligent, and they have no qualms with an extra pair of hands. Especially since they're small enough to clean out the ports between the mobile suit's joints. Since he has no name, one of them starts calling him "Nanashi". It means nameless in his native tongue.

The name sticks.

**AC 188**

Had Nanashi remained in his cluster, perhaps history might have changed.

However he was not on L3-X18999, so the story goes like this. Two travelers come to the colony.

They say they are father and son, but really, they're just an assassin and a boy with no name and pain in his eyes. Their job is to kill a certain man, but they fail. Perhaps it is because the rising star of the Specials and his cadets join the battle, perhaps it isn't. And because Nanashi is not there, it will still be seven years before he meets another child of the colonies.

**AC 190**

This is not the first time Nanashi has killed his own comrades. And, he is quite sure, it will not be the last time either.

The destruction of the rebel army is just a formality at this point - taking in Middie had been a mistake, but it's rather too late to rectify it. It's a pity, her stew was rather good.

"You have no name, no past... And now, no comrades." And her words make him seethe but only on the inside. She calls him empty but Nanashi merely sees it as him being selfish. He refuses to have any of those things because he knows that they can and will be taken away from him.

Even though he knows this though, he just can't help but envy her. He turns his back to her and starts to walk away, even as she begins to scream Nanashi. "You got the wrong guy. I'm not Nanashi. I'm a traveler looking for a place to go home to."

And so he set off for outer space.

**AC 194**

Nanashi has no name, no past, and, it seems, no real future either. He lives in a colony of the L3 cluster, assisting with the planning stages of the so-called "Operation Meteor". The past few months he's made something like a friend in the man named Trowa Barton, who shows him pictures of his neice (Mariemeia Barton, already five years old. She could grow to be queen, or the destruction of them all) and teaches him how to play pool.

Maybe tomorrow he will find something to fill his empty spaces, to make him feel as young as Barton treats him sometimes.

But probably not.

Nanashi has learned of war, of life, of death, of peace that really is nothing more than ignorance. There is, he thinks, nothing more to learn.

* * *

**Notes**:

I considered letting Trowa and Heero meet in X18999 but it just... wasn't working. But hey, I no longer have to write the Odin years!

Also, "Bloom" is probably Germanic in origin, which is kinda iffy with me making Katherine Perjola. So I decided that Perjola may or may not be Toris and Gilbert's kid. Or Toris and Arthur's. YMMV.

Oh! And my own L3 colony. I considered making Trowa X18999, but it seems like a relatively new colony. S06 comes from the Leo MS designation. Because Trowa likes Leos and I imagine L3-S06 might be where they were first mass produced?


	4. L4-J615787

**AC 045**

The first thing Quatre learns about the man named Francis is that he despised the idea of being called "father", or "mon père", or anything of the like. He preferred to be called "brother" but Quatre refuses to call him that. So he was always Francis to him.

The next is that Francis is a terrible lech. He runs from person to person, caring little other than their beauty; Quatre promises to himself that he would never use people in such a fashion.

But Quatre can appreciate the comforts the older man brings. Flowers and wine, grass and artificial sunlight... Yes, he most definitely appreciates this.

**AC 069**

Introductions are not necessarily, but both Quatre and Francis take formalities to heart. It is nice to meet one of the many nations who are paying to keep his home in orbit after all, even though he seems as bad as Francis at times. Sadiq also brings a young man named Nadim Winner with him. He will be one of the founding families of the main cluster, and Quatre sees him as a man he could definitely respect.

His wife, Mirele Peacecraft Winner, is beautiful and she takes to him right away. She treats him like her own son, and lets him be a playmate to their daughter Muna. For many years, it is perfect and peaceful, and Quatre can laugh and be happy, unperturbed by new regulations or laws. The people of L4 are happy and healthy, and that's all he can really ask for, he thinks.

It is only after Mirele is ripped apart trying to give birth to her next child that he realizes that, maybe, humans aren't meant to live in space after all.

**AC 180**

Quatre watches Quaterine with a wince, letting the woman squeeze the life out of his hand. Her husband is busy, running about the small room, trying to help and really doing nothing more than making a nuisance of himself. It warms Quatre though - Zayeed had plenty of important work he should be doing, but he's here, with his wife instead.

After many painstaking hours, the child is born, only not really. Even though he's standing at Quaterine's side Quatre knows already that the flicker of life is not there, and leaves her husband to find out. Zayeed is talking quietly with the midwife in harsh whispers, too far away to hear or be heard by Quaterine, and he starts to gently stroke her hair in distraction.

"Is my son all right?" she asks, trying to look past Quatre and failing. Natural child birth is a messy business on Earth he's been told, but trying in space is even worse. She doesn't even have the energy to sit up right now, and he fears she never will.

Quatre hates lying, but he would hate to feel Quaterine's heartbreak more. "Yes, of course he is. Zayeed is taking him to Iria and Amani now." He clutches at her hand and continues to smooth sweaty hair away from her face. "Is it true you two are naming him Quatre?" He keeps his voice calm and soothing, although he was honestly curious. He had left briefly to look into some new factories, only to return to his home and find that there might be a child named after him.

"Yes, of course," Quaterine answers, her voice cheering up a bit. But she's still so tired, and Quatre can feel her fading beneath his fingers. "It's a strong name, especially since you are one of the most wonderful people I've been blessed to meet." She smiles weakly, but it's still a smile that makes Quatre's heart soar. "I hope he'll grow to be such a gentleman like you are."

There's nothing he can really say to that, so Quatre smiles and nods and all the while he knows that this is going to be the last conversation they have together. He wonders if Quaterine can feel it too.

When Zayeed returns mere moments later, Quatre moves a bit to let the man near his wife. He's talking in soft tones, giving the same lies to his dying wife. It is painful, for the both of them, to watch the woman they love wither away like this. Quatre exits the room, giving the two the last few precious moments undisturbed. He bustles away daughters and servants alike, unwilling to breach their privacy even after he knows the spark of life that makes up Quaterine is gone from the colonies, from the mortal plane entirely.

"How many know about the baby?" Quatre questions the moment Zayeed leaves the room.

The man is wane, but he heaves a sigh. He doesn't want to talk about this now, but he knows that Quatre would not leave him alone. "Not many. You, me, Iria..." The man shrugs, not caring for formalities at this moment.

"Then, perhaps we can do this -" Quatre begins to explain his plan: Zayeed will tell the people that his son was born, but his wife passed away. To make sure nothing happens to his newest child, he plans to hide him away to make sure no other complications were present. In a few years time, Quatre would come in, playing the part of his son for a number of years, to let there be a boy that had Quaterine's legacy make his way into the world, and do some good in it.

It's the least he could do for yet another woman space has robbed from him.

**AC 193**

Quatre watched the Earth grow closer through the ship's window, heaving a sigh. "What a boring planet." Just a collection of molds and water, and yet it caused so much trouble and strife. It was going to be Quatre's first trip to the planet since becoming a Winner, and he wasn't really looking forward to it. The sudden seizure of the spaceship barely registered as a hiccup, one that Quatre didn't feel he would need to concern himself with. The brief nap before they were forcibly docked to MO-III did do wonders for his mood.

Being told he was going to be a hostage was rather unsurprising, but these "Maganac"'s demands were. "I don't know why anyone would want to return to that planet, but if you call -" it was hard not calling him Zayeed, even with over a decade of practice - "my father, I'm sure he would be willing to help you out. Not for me of course," Quatre gave the taller man a wry grin, "since I'm rather replaceable."

The Maganac's leader gave him an odd look, but the video call with Zayeed went pretty much as planned - the Maganac's would take the workers back to Earth, while the Winner family ended up footing the bill and holding the Alliance back from pursuing. The request to speak to Quatre was unexpected though.

"What is it?" Quatre asked with a mix of surprise and resignation.

"_What _are you doing there?"

Quatre's lips quirked up into a slight smirk. "Surprised to see your tool acting on its own?" was asked with just the right amount of teenage angst and rebellion.

The elicited a frustrated sigh from Zayeed who, for the life of him, did not understand _why _Quatre was playing up the teenage rebellion. "You're still talking like that?"

"Of course," Quatre scoffed, "considering all your children are made for the _convenience _of the Winner family." He was working himself up and Quatre was unsure where the frustration was coming from. "I'll show you... That even we can think for our-"

Whatever he was going to say was cut off when the video feed was terminated and, at the same time, the tall leader of the rebels slapped him right across his face.

"Wh-what was _that _for!?" Quatre hissed, gingerly touching the reddening mark on his cheek. He didn't get _hit_, who the hell did this man think he was!

Despite the venomous look being shot at him, the taller man remained unfazed. "I don't know what your problem is, but have some _pride _in yourself." Quatre's eyes narrowed at the idea that he lacked pride - he was a damned colony cluster. "I, too, was born from a test tube." Quatre was opening up his mouth to refute the fact that _he _of all people was a test tube baby before he ran over his words in his head. After a half second worth of thought though, his mouth closed with a click, realizing that, _yeah,_ what he said could have totally been misconstrued as angst over being born in a test tube.

And with that, the leader of the Maganacs left Quatre behind, utterly bewildered by the turn of events. The rebels went about their business, working to get everything in order to leave MO-III. After a while Quatre, pride wounded but unsure of exactly why, moved away from the main group with a huff, hoping to be alone.

It lasted, but only for a little while. One of the workers came and sat down near where Quatre was standing. The older man looked between the young heir and the Maganacs down below. The conversation with the 'mad scientist' (and, with that mustache, it wasn't much of a stretch to think of him doing illegal experiments or something) left Quatre even more bewildered, but it gave him plenty to think about. Pride in being born, huh? Surely in applied to _people_, even when they came out of test tubes, but what about personifications of a bunch of orbiting metal?

Quatre didn't get much longer to think though, far too busy subduing the traitor and bringing him to Rashid and the others to deal with. It wasn't even a decision to push Rashid out of the way of the bullet, it just happened before Quatre could think. He took the lethal gunshot wound to his shoulder, but wasn't able to take the other two.

Shots of "Captain!" was swallowed up by the pain for a moment, but Quatre shook off the shock. Abdul came to Quatre's side, trying to check on him. "You okay kid!?"

Quatre gave him a weak smile, hand clutching over his injured shoulder. "Look to your captain, he's the one who's important to you." That didn't seem to dissuade the Maganac's second in command, as he maneuvered Quatre off to the side to treat his wound. It wasn't the first time Quatre had gotten hurt, but it was the first time he had been shot, and so he looked on with morbid fascination as the man deftly removed the shell. The vest he was wearing was a lost cause, but the shirt was fine enough, and the dark color would hide the blood stains. Pity about the vest though, he rather liked it, as it was one of the few Francis had bought him when he had been in space last.

The battle to protect the last transport was nothing, especially compared to the battle to get the Maganacs to let him into a mobile suit. He had studied plenty of battles over the past century, and it was easy enough to direct the others to keep the enemy preoccupied with battle instead of the transports. The decision to stay and fight, to guard the others' retreats, was easy to make; unlike him, they had goals and a place to return to. All Quatre had was the guilt over Quaterine and his dysfunctional relationships with Zayeed and Francis. But the fact that the Maganacs thought of him as family made something like forgiveness bloom within him.

As Rashid described the Earth, Quatre found himself feeling nostalgic towards a place he had never felt anything but contempt for, but the man's descriptions... "Sounds beautiful... I'd like to see it some day." He told Rashid over the com link. And he would, so long as he was seeing the Earth with them. "I don't know how many years it'll take, but I promise I'll find you." The mobile suit's thrusters came alive as he directed it towards the enemy. "I'll try to be a little stronger by then!"

_That's right... I want to go to Earth, not to run away, but to find myself._

* * *

**Notes:**

Colony name is just random gibberish, sorry. The only canonical L4 colonies where the MO's and I'm not actually sure they were at Lagrange Point 4. All the Maganac names are real, but not all the Winners. Because there are a blasted number of Winners. And also Peacecrafts. Idk why I decided that one of Relena's great-great-aunts or something married into the Winners but that is my reasoning for why they have blonde in their genes xD

And I am so, so sorry for the switching tenses.

I think of all the pilots, Wufei and Quatre's backstories get the most significant changes because they know what they are. Which made AC 193 so freakin' difficult because so many things changed and yet so many things didn't and just, ugh. That portion was so freakin' long.

Fun fact, I never realized the connecting between "Maganac" to the tagalog word "kamag-anak" which means relatives or kin.


	5. L5-A0206

Totes forgot to mention this. The title comes from a song by a protopunk band called "Sparks". Also, updated the story image and the genres! AFBoGfOS is probably not as tragic as Neglect was, so I moved it to General/Family.

Thank you for all the reviews yo!

* * *

**AC 020**

The Long Clan has been the dragon that protected China for China for years upon years upon years; a constant that has followed Yao through the ages.

And yet his boss was sending them away, too scared of the power that had, time and again, helped China to stand. And if exiling was not enough, giving the excuse that they were "protecting the nation's assets in space" just rubs the nation the wrong way.

Yao watches the shuttle leave the atmosphere with a heavy heart, feeling his beloved people leave his heart for good.

Some months later, the nation makes his first trip to space, dreading the conditions he will find. Instead, Yao is greeted by the Long clan elder who holds up a small child with intelligent eyes. It takes a moment to realize what exactly he's looking at, but then Yao smiles. It's been... so long since he'd seen such a tiny nation.

"I'm Yao, aru. And, I suppose you need a name too, yes? How about Wufei, aru?"

**AC 084**

"Gēge!" Wufei's small form launches himself down the slopping hill, impacting against the elder's legs. "You're here!"

Yao chuckles, ruffling up his younger brother's soft, black hair, before getting a good look at him. "Wufei! It's been too long. Are you getting taller, aru?" he asks, a smile on his face.

The young child laughs, before shaking his head. "You were just here two months ago gēge!" Wufei exclaims. "Did you remember to bring the new plants for the garden?" This was something Wufei was rather excited about, and he had been working hard on all his lessons so when gēge came by, regardless of when it was, he would be able to help.

With a smile, Yao reaches into his bag to reveal over a dozen packets of seeds, all of flowers. Wufei's shout of joy makes Yao feel lighter, and he is so glad he had been able to get away. A0206 was getting bigger, as there were occasional immigrants, but only the necessities made up the colony. This would change that.

Yao hates the fact that he could only have stolen snippets of time with this child, but he could not stay in space for long periods, nor was Wufei ready to leave his home.

It's for the best though - with war brewing upon the Earth, he didn't want Wufei there. He was much safer up in space, in the colonies.

**AC 140**

Meetings upon meetings upon meetings; that seemed to be the only thing Yao has done since he joined the United Earth Sphere Alliance. It had been some months since he had the time to visit A0206 and he was looking forward to relaxing with his youngest child.

It was early evening by the time he arrived on the colony, most of its residents were likely in their homes, but there was one person he knew would be out and about. Steps quick and sure, Yao made his way to the field of flowers that he and Wufei had planted ages ago and, sure enough, his younger brother was sitting there, nose stuck in another book.

Chuckling at the sight, Yao walked towards him. "Wufei, there you are, aru!"

The black hair child looked up from behind his glasses, before his eyes narrowed. Instead of answering Yao, he returned back to his book.

Was Wufei ignoring him? That was nothing like his polite dìdi. "Wang Wufei, that was very rude, aru. You know better than to igno-"

"Chang."

Yao snapped his mouth shut, unused to being interrupted by his younger brother. "What are you talking about?"

After a moment of thought, Wufei closed the book he was reading with a firm _clap_, and regarded the older man with an impassive stare. "Since you joined the Alliance," he spoke, words clipped and spoken clearly, "I feel you are obviously _not _my brother. The gēge I know certainly wouldn't force me to be shackled to them." He gave a careless shrug, already looking away. "As such, I felt I should change my family name, as we are not related. Please refer to me as Chang Wufei," he placed a heavy emphasis on his surname, "or not at all."

Yao felt his blood run cold. No, no, _no_, not again. "But dìdi, you don't understand, aru. The Alliance-"

"Wang Yao xiānshēng," Wufei interrupted again. "I believe I already mentioned that you are _not _my brother, and I would appreciate if you stop referring to me as such. Please leave, we of the Long clan do not care for outsiders." With that said, Wufei went back to his book.

Yao tried to speak more with Wufei, but the child of the colonies paid him no heed. At one point, many decades ago, Yao believed that his heart could never hurt as bad as it did when Kiku raised his sword against him.

He was right in some respects - this hurts worse.

**AC 175**

Yao tries to visit A0206, but he is asked politely to not leave his ship by one of the young men of the colony. Long Zi-ling gives him an awkward smile as he helps to refuel the spaceship, but he doesn't let Yao through to see his precious dìdi.

**AC 180**

Sitting in his favorite field, Wufei tries to concentrate on his latest book, only to find his mind slipping. It was like a spark igniting somewhere in his chest... What in the world could cause that? Ah, that's right, Master Long's grandchild was being born today. It probably would not be remiss to visit the newest member of the clan, his family.

When Wufei first saw Long Meilan, he thought, so long as she adopted her grandfather's mannerisms, she would be another great leader of the Long clan and a good boss. And then she took one look at him and started crying.

**AC 194**

This was wrong on so _many _levels.

Wufei fiddled with the clasps of the traditional robes he wore, sending covert glances at his wife-to-be. It was Meilan's fourteenth birthday and, in accordance to the clan's laws, she was to be wed. But the lack of marriage partners in her age group caused a dilemma that was circumvented by marrying the brat to _him_. If he didn't respect and admire Zi-ling so much, Wufei probably would have asked if he was crazy.

His bride hated him and showing her just how weak she was just made it worse. Master O's later lecture did nothing for his mood - the man did not understand Wufei's standing within the colony, as he was an outsider. His _wife_, although understanding that he had a relationship of some sort with her grandfather, still thought Wufei was just some orphaned clans member, living on the good will of Master Long. It was just... so frustrating. Wufei planned to hide himself away for the next few days with his books, but the sirens and klaxons sounding across the colony made that impossible.

Finding out what was happening made it even worse.

"Stupid woman!" Wufei spat, already rushing towards the hangar bay that housed O's mobile suit. _How does she think she can uphold justice without any strength? _It didn't matter that Shenlong had no weapons installed yet, Wufei's only priority was saving Meilan, his stupid, stubborn,wonderful wife.

After the last enemy mobile suit retreated, Wufei quickly returned home. There was no question of it, Wufei would honor Nataku's request. Even though he would have preferred to have her checked out by a doctor, his wife asked to see the flower fields. "It's... beautiful isn't it? I've never appreciated flowers like this before." A soft breeze wafted through the glade, picking up some stray petals that had been crushed during the fighting. To think that the field that he and gēge planted would still look perfect after a battle... "Wufei."

"What?"

"I... was strong, wasn't I? You weren't ashamed of me as your wife, were you?"

Wufei couldn't bring himself to say that he was ashamed to be her husband. Nataku deserved so much more than him. "Yeah... You're strong... Stronger than anyone." His words rang with utter conviction, as he had already decided.

Nataku chuckled, allowing herself to lean against Wufei's shoulder. "No... You are... stronger..."

"Get off of me," Wufei groused, although his words held no bite. But even as those words left him, Wufei could feel the flame within him that was Nataku sputter out. Sequestering and isolating himself away has brought nothing but ruin, Wufei should have known that. It had taken Nataku's sacrifice to open his eyes, but now...

_Watch, Nataku! I swear I will bring justice!_

* * *

Notes: And there's the final pilot! My knowledge of Chinese is nonexistent, thank you wiki.  
Gēge == older brother  
Dìdi == younger brother  
Wang Yao xiānshēng == Mr. Wang Yao (I very nearly had Wufei use the honorific associated with deceased relatives, whoops!) And I had no idea what I was going to do with Meilan for the longest while. Official sources point to the Long Clan being exiled _after _A0206 goes up, but for my purposes the event happens at the same time. I could not find official scans of Wufei's chapter in EZ. Nor can I find scans of the original Japanese so I couldn't even translate them myself for the character's lines. *sighs* Regarding the name: "Wufei" is the fifth "child" Yao has taken care of, with the first four being Japan, Korea, Taiwan, and Hong Kong. This is utterly ignoring the fact that China had a huge impact on pretty much every nation in East and parts of South East Asia, but I feel Yao "raised" those four more. Fun fact, the characters for Wufei's name pretty much calls him "Fifth Flight". Whether the meaning is similar in Chinese is debatable, but it will definitely have something to do with wings/feathers/flying. Well, would you look at that, it does have the same meaning!  
The character used for "Chang" is made up of the components for "long" and "bow". I thought it was really different from Wang ("king"), but then I looked up words that use the character for "Chang" and got "hari", which holds the meaning of "will-power" or "pride" and was ridiculously happy. Of course, I should be using the Chinese meanings (more inline with the kanji meanings of stretch, spread, or open up) but idgaf.


	6. Sanq Kingdom

**Pre notes**:

BAC means "Years Before After Colony", so 100 BAC would be 100 years before AC 1. Because I need a term for the world before AC xD

Magnus == Denmark

Had hoped to get this in by the end of February, but I've been sick "/ Part of the reason why this is a crap chapter, sorry.

Also edited L2 because the rest of the fic has been written in present tense, I might as well be consistent.

* * *

**30 BAC**

"I... I want to be my own country!"

Magnus pauses from signing papers to look over his desk. Standing before him is a short boy with platinum hair cropped around his face, all wide-eyed and serious. It was, Magnus could admit to himself, rather cute. "Milliardo, what are you talking about?"

The child huffs, crossing his arms in front of him.

Without a thought, Magnus flicks the small boy on the forehead, laughing. "You're like a century too early for that, squirt." Despite his words, he gives Milliardo a fond smile. "You can get back to me when you find a leader who will be a good boss to you, got it?"

Milliardo glares from beneath his bangs, before he huffs and leaves the room. Magnus can hear a not so quite "I'll show you!" coming from down the hall.

He chuckles to himself and gets back to his paperwork. Ah, to be that young again.

**17 BAC**

Milliardo smiles as he watches the coronation ceremony from behind the curtains. King Einar Peacecraft looks absolutely stunning in the formal wear. It is, Milliardo hopes, the beginning of a long and prosperous line. And the use of that stunning suit.

**AC 146**

"We're going to be a pacifist nation!"

Milliardo pauses over the paperwork to send Katrina an odd look. "...All right then?" He wasn't quite sure how that was different than normal for them; Sanq had not participated in any of the wars over the last century. "You do realize how oxymoronic that is, considering what happened with the Wyvern, right?"

His new queen scowls; just because she was an amazing pilot, doesn't mean she was a warmongering scoundrel! She believed in Heero wholeheartedly after all. "Youthful indiscretions!"

"Then maybe you should stop being the Ligntning Queen then!" This had been a conversation the two had rehashed several times in the last few months, but it never failed to make Milliardo crack a grin. "Speaking of 'youthful indiscretions,'" Milliardo begins, taking a sip of his red wine. The best perk of living in Sanq Kingdom's castle was definitely the access to a well-stocked wine cellar, and no one who would hound the young nation for drinking. "Have you noticed Nanna's... dalliances with that captain? Think his name was Rex or something."

The new proposals Katrina is browsing through fell from her hands. Her daughter was doing what with one of the captains of the guard!?

**AC 175, April 8**

The news trickles down to Earth in bits and pieces. While watching another broadcast, Milliardo raises his glass in respect and mourning to a man that had influenced his queen, and made her speak with such fondness. Perhaps it's callous of him, but Milliardo is rather glad Katrina had passed away last year, leaving her son in law to run the nation.

Had she seen the media circus that has come about with Heero Yuy's death, she probably would have done something drastic and not at all lady-like.

**AC 180, April 7**

Nanna and Marticus made a splendid couple, even though there were worries early on that one or both were barren. But the birth of the young princess Relena has revitalized the whole castle and many are celebrating such a joyous occasion. While his wife nurses their new born daughter, Marticus finds Milliardo on the veranda, sipping wine as if it's just another day.

"You seem troubled, Milliardo," he rumbles, looking the supposed youth over. He appears as usual, but there is tension around his eyes, and in the stiff fingers that hold the flute.

In response, Milliardo shrugs, placing down his glass so he can pour one for his boss. "Is it an omen that our princess is born on such an ominous day?"

Marticus thinks for a moment, taking a sip from the offered glass. As always, it's a splendid wine, but the Peacecraft mansion is not known for carrying sub-par liquor, something that supposedly is attributed to the being sitting next to him. "Perhaps it means that Relena will take up the mantle that was left on Yuy's passing."

Milliardo scoffs and drinks again. Perhaps, perhaps.

**AC 182**

The castle is burning and Milliardo, for one horrible moment, wonders if this is his end, not from honorable battle but an intervention. But no, he has a reason to survive, to keep going. Relena is crying in his arms, and it's all he can do to shush his princess as he scrambles over rubble that once was a palace wall. Marticus' booming voice rises for a moment, before it is drown out by the flames. He doesn't have the time to feel the pain of his passing because his only thought is to get the princess to safety.

In the end, he entrusts her to one of Marticus' aides, a man named Darlian. Something in him hates himself for giving her up, but the more sensible part knows that this is how it has to be - Milliardo still has the body of a child, hardly a teen, and taking care of a two year old just wasn't going to work. Darlian, at least, is a good man, who will raise Relena well. It's not much, but he helps secure them passage out of the country before he returns to one of taller hills to watch the destruction of the mansion.

He feels it as his land burns, as his people scream and flee. And in that moment, he throws away ideals he has harbored for nearly two hundred years. He will not rest until the ones who destroyed him burn.

**AC 184**

There is far too much sand here. Every letter he sends from Lake Victoria starts with those words, much to his brothers' amusement. For the last two years, it's about the only thing he can joke about. He's really 200 years old now, but does it really mean anything when Sanq is nothing more than a footnote in the history books? Magnus calls occasionally, and rarer still are letters from Emil and Bjørn. But despite their attempts to make him come back home, to elect new leaders, he refuses. There is only one person who can rule the Sanq kingdom and she is not ready for it yet.

At least, he's met someone he doesn't mind following around for a while. Treize sees Zechs as a star pupil, if an odd one, and though he knows there's more to him than meets the eye - the young man did help him forge his acceptance papers into the base - he has the wrong idea. In the future, maybe he would use that idea. Katrina's mask is still hidden away in his duffle and maybe today is the day he'll try it on.

**AC 186**

Lucrezia Noin, Zechs finds out, is an all together weird woman. She was also picked by Treize for the possible mobile suits corps and is a rather good pilot, but half the time he keeps comparing her to Katrina, which is hardly fair at all. Sometimes they bicker over who had the better plan in the simulators and other times they sit down for a cup of tea. Noin goes out of her way to hang around him and Zechs obliges, even putting up with her calling him the prince of the stars. They work well together but, Zechs rationalizes, he could work just as well with any of the other members of his unit.

Later, when Zechs is stranded after the mission at Marius Lunar Base with no one but that stupid Elve, he finds himself surprised that he misses Noin's presence so much.

**AC 191**

It's been nine years - he's gotten used to being called Zechs and shooting people and being Treize's first lieutenant.

And yet seeing his princess is nearly enough to undo all his hard work. Zechs has to forcibly remind himself that he's done too much, killed too many people to hold Relena in his arms like he used to, ten years ago. But saving her, speaking with her, and seeing that she's safe has made Zechs feel something he hasn't in many years.

Hope.

Hope that, maybe, he can stop being the Lightning Count and be the Sanq Kingdom once again.

* * *

**Notes**:

Am I a horrible person for imagining Zechs running about OZ strongholds, offing people with a katana while yelling "SHI NE!"? Koyasu-sensei, I know you're the most prolific seiyuu ever but all the roles I love you in, you're a bro/siscon.

Researching the back story for this chapter made me pretty much want to rage quit Frozen Teardrop without reading it. There are way too many people named after numbers. Who's bright idea was it to name a bunch of people freakin' Cinquante, Vingt, and Diz-Neuf? And there's a distinct lack of information about the Sanq kingdom other than the fact that wearing awesome clothes and masks might be hereditary.  
I realized recently that the exploded hotel in ch1 was probably homage to either Shattered Moments or Child's Eyes. Credit, even if one doesn't realize it, is totes due to these awesome authors.


	7. (Null) Void Theory

And instead of introducing actual Hetalia characters, here's a Doctor J interlude instead.

* * *

**AC 195, April 6**

The first time Jay saw Black Alpha, he was struck by his eyes - they were good, able to see much with a glance and, more importantly, Jay could see the determination in them.

As he grew older, however, it wasn't hard to realize that the most striking thing about the child is his looks. Jay nearly choked on his coffee the first time he sees the child from the corner of his eye and thought he saw a ghost; the resemblance to Heero was _uncanny_, and he itched to look into his charge's background, even though he knew it was a futile effort. Despite the mask he wears, Black Alpha, to his core, os a good child and Jay hopes that choosing his own fate would spark something other than pain in those eyes.

"It's finally time for Operation Meteor," he says in lieu of a greeting. The child is already in his space suit, getting it ready for launch. There is rather little Jay can do from his end. "After the failed attempt on Minister Darlian, we can assume the Alliance knows of the operation." He was still trying to figure out why the Foundation thought Darlian would know, but it hardly mattered at this point.

"But this is _different_ from the _true_ operation," the child's voice was slightly distorted by the speakers.

Jay hums to himself noncommittally. "Yes... This is the operation _you_ chose... But you'll be risking your life," he reminds him.

"Don't worry about me... Life comes _cheap_, especially mine..."

Jay was worried the child would say that. They talk over specifics of Operation Meteor, but this is rather little to say since they're scrapping Dekim's plans almost entirely.

"Then let's decide on a _code name_." Doctor J looks up at the ship. Ah, pity, what he wouldn't give to see his charge's face when he tells him - "I've borrowed the name of the pacifist colony leader... All right, _Heero Yuy_?"

Inside of the ship, the child, no, _Heero_, thinks about it for a moment. To take on that man's name, to soil it with blood and violence. But maybe... If it's for the colonies... "Understood..."

The ship housing XXXG-01W leaves the colony with little fanfare, starting the trip down to Earth and the operation. Jay allows himself a wry grin as he watches the Gundam and the boy leave. "I'm rather glad that I changed the detonation frequency."


End file.
